I just need to say it once. आप just need to hear it. I प्यार Delena and the प्रशंसकों here. I firmly believe that DE प्रशंसकों are the smartest, most articulate, thoughtful, perceptive, compassionate, and all round awesome of the entire TVD fandom. But something has been troubling me of late, particularly in the aftermath of 3x01. It seems that as long as we get reams of DE-infused promos, webclips, episode stills and tantalising interviews, then everyone is profoundly confident and positive about the outcome of the triangle. But when the tide turns, and there's even a sniff of SE या trouble in the air, then things quickly descend into crisis central. Julie tweets a बिना सोचे समझे टिप्पणी दे and it's obvious she ships SE and hates our guts. SE are featured in a lip-lock, and there's like, NO HOPE. Elena tells Stefan she loves him, and suddenly, people are concluding that they will be endgame when it's only the beginning of the third season.

I think that I've had a taster of what it feels like to ship Bamon. If आप know anything about how that spot operates, you'll be offended. They rant and gripe and rant some और all over the place. I'd been hearing bad things about the phone call scene before I'd even seen it, as I live in the UK where the new season hasn't aired yet. I didn't want to watch it, but when I did, I didn't understand what everyone was freaking out about. I mean, I can sort of see why they might think those things, but do I think the scene itself justifies the kind of reaction it got from some of our fanbase? NO WAY. I didn't feel depressed after I'd watched it; I felt depressed AFTER I read what some प्रशंसकों were saying:

"Elena कहा 'I प्यार you' to Stefan even though she knows he's a ripper. That means she'll always प्यार him."
This is totally in keeping with Elena's character, and SE. Elena grew to care about Damon deeply even though she'd seen him at his very worst. Therefore, it makes total sense she would still प्यार Stefan and want him back, ripper या not; especially when SHE'S NEVER SEEN FOR HERSELF WHAT STEFAN THE RIPPER IS REALLY LIKE. Yes, she's heard about it, but it's not the same. Stefan the Ripper is NOT the guy she knows, and is definitely NOT the guy she fell in प्यार with, so she's not looking for 'Rippah Stefan' who's leaving bodies up and down the eastern seaboard, she's looking for the old Stefan, who would never have done that. Elena isn't looking for Stefan because she loves him as a ripper; she's looking for him because she still sees him as the trustworthy, dependable, solid-as-a-rock, all-round good guy. THAT'S the only Stefan she knows and loves. So to say that Elena will always प्यार Stefan no matter what he does, does not ring true. How can she प्यार him like that when she doesn't know him as a ripper? Will she still hold the same conviction about her relationship and in Stefan once she finds out? Now that's a question.
Some DE प्रशंसकों were saying that that one scene ruined the whole episode for them. Why?? Because Elena कहा she loves Stefan? Why is that so scary and threatening when we've already seen her say it numerous times before? If those scenes also put आप off your dinner, then OK. आप can't stomach SE. But was it enough to make आप doubt DE so much, आप लॉस्ट hope completely? Probably not, otherwise, आप wouldn't be here. Do आप realise how utterly dramatic and bizarre it sounds to claim that one मिनट SE scene ruined the episode for आप when we got some great DE ones? Ask yourself just what it is about that scene that made आप feel like hating the whole episode when it was no different from various 'I प्यार yous' we've seen from Stelena in the past. Most of them have been unremarkable, if a touch sickly sweet. What gave the scene in 3x01 that extra kick was that unlike those other times, 3x01 had an emotional edge to it because it was sad. So it has a much stronger hold on fans. However, if it took until 3x01 for some viewers to sit up and take notice of SE, then it signifies that their journey has been fairly dull and ordinary so far. Pretty much every romantic SE scene epitomises the डिज़्नी cliches of love. आप know, 'I'm gonna प्यार आप forever after only knowing आप for 10 days,' 'Boy meets girl, they talk and it's epic...' या in this case, not. What I'm saying is, a sad scene definitely influences people's judgements and perceptions over which couple should be endgame. If it's taken 3 years for SE to make any impact on viewers because of an atypically sad scene, then they can't possibly be as epic as the producers want us to believe. Why do आप think DE have और प्रशंसकों than them?

If आप ask me, the phonecall scene was signature TVD head-twisting stuff. Stefan had just killed Andie and upset a lot of people. To make the audience feel sorry for him, and to make us empathise with Elena's खोजिए for him, they had to put that scene in. DE प्रशंसकों have the tendency to see every SE scene as a potential threat to an endgame. I think in this case however, it's और than that. The phonecall was used to convince viewers that Stefan - in spite of his 'ripper' facade, was still holding onto his humanity, and was therefore redeemable. How could प्रशंसकों hate him after watching him cry? Without the phonecall scene, it's unlikely the audience would have agreed with Elena's persistence to find him, and if they're not emotionally on board with her Save Stefan mission, then the following episodes are bound to fall flat, because they don't get why she would want to find a guy who goes around slaughtering बिना सोचे समझे people, including his brother's sometime-girlfriend. I suppose it's a bit like using emotional blackmail on the fans...

DE's journey is not easy. It will be challenging and at times, heartbreaking. We all knew it wouldn't be easy. In 'Veronica Mars' Logan describes his and Veronica's story as 'epic': 'Lives ruined, bloodshed, epic.' Veronica is baffled. 'Do आप really think a relationship should be that hard?' she asks him. He answers:'No-one writes songs about the ones that come easy.' He's right. Because if it was easy, then it wouldn't be epic. DE's story, their journey - it's epic, and it has barely even started yet. So are आप going to jump off the train before its left the station because आप don't think there's any hope? या are आप looking out the window, wondering where it's going to take आप next? Is your glass half-empty या half-full? I know what mine is. My सवाल to all of आप is: can आप say the same??